With funding from the Institute for Museum and Library Services, the Council on Library and Information Resources, ARL (Association of Research Libraries), the University Libraries Group, and the Regional Alliance for Preservation conducted a joint study in 2001 to examine the state of preservation programs in American academic libraries. The study was conducted in two phases and relied on qualitative as well as quantitative data gathering. In Phase I, statistical information and other quantitative data relevant to preservation activity were collected in a survey of 116 libraries from the University Libraries Group, major non-ARL land grant institutions, and leading liberal arts colleges in what is informally known as the Oberlin Group. These data were compared with information that had been published in ARL Preservation Statistics for 2000-2001. Phase II focused on obtaining qualitative data to complement the statistical data. Qualitative data were gathered by means of 20 site visits to institutions that represented the three surveyed groups plus the ARL. Appendixes include the survey form with data and instructions, site visit interview questions and a list of institutions responding to statistical survey, Phase I. (Author).

This book provides a single-volume introduction to the principles, strategies and practices currently applied by librarians and record keepers to the preservation of digital information. Also included are case studies of practice from the library, record keeping, audiovisual archiving, data archiving and geospatial communities.

This book provides a single-volume introduction to the principles, strategies and practices currently applied by librarians and recordkeeping professionals to the critical issue of preservation of digital information. It incorporates practice from both the recordkeeping and the library communities, taking stock of current knowledge about digital preservation and describing recent and current research, to provide a framework for reflecting on the issues that digital preservation raises in professional practice.

In George Bobinski's sixty-year career as a library professional (1945 - 2005), libraries underwent massive changes and epochal advancements. In this important work, Bobinski summarizes the major trends and events that have transformed the library world and the profession of librarianship into what it is today. Libraries and Librarianship begins with a historical review of the core of librarianship, focusing on the information formats available in or through libraries; the organization of library information sources; changes in reference service; trends in library management; and the all-embracing impact of technology on libraries. Bobinski also addresses library types and the growth of library cooperation and resource sharing; the spread of collaboration through library systems, consortia, and networks; federal funding, library philanthropy, and the important role of the Council on Library and Information Resources since its establishment in 1956; the growth and activities of professional library associations; the shifting roles of gender and ethnicity; and the changes in library buildings. Furthermore, a list of eminent individuals who had the greatest impact on the field during this period and influenced the dramatic changes that have taken place in library and information science education is included. Concluding with a discussion of the major developments in the field and providing a look into what the future might hold for libraries, this book will be embraced by library students, practitioners, and professors alike.

In July 2003 a special IFLA conference was held in Berlin, devoted to the preparedness of library collections in the face of 'man made' disasters (conflict, war) and/or natural disasters (earthquakes, floods, hurricanes). A panel of international experts discussed these issues and exchanged views. Papers focused on both national policy planning and on the institutional level, with an emphasis on what has been shown to work on the basis of practical experience in libraries and other sectors: In addition, case studies, on a worldwide scale, are presented. This book contains the proceedings of that conference.